Product Details

• Actors: Golshifteh Farahani, Hossein Panahi, Parviz Shahinkhou, Maryam Hamid, Nessim Kahloul
• Directors: Nacer Khemir
• Format: Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
• Language: English, Farsi
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: Unrated
• Studio: Typecast Releasing
• DVD Release Date: December 16, 2008
• Run Time: 96 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B001J697BC
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #35,419 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)
• For more information about "Bab'aziz: The Prince Who Contemplated His Soul" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Review

The third feature by the Tunisian filmmaker and poet Nacer Khemir is a structurally audacious fairy tale that imparts moral lessons and shows how narratives reflect and shape life. --- The New York Times

The breathtaking desert landscapes that dominate Nacer Khemir s beautiful, elliptical Middle East drama deserve the big screen... you ll remember the dreamlike state the film induces long after the credits roll. --- New York Magazine

Product Description

Winner! Best Feature Film
- Kazan Golden Minbar Film Festival

Winner! Golden Dagger
- Muscat Film Festival

Winner! Crystal Simorgh
- Fajr Film Festival

A visual poem of incomparable beauty, this masterpiece from director Nacer Khemir begins with the story of a blind dervish named Bab Aziz and his spirited granddaughter, Ishtar. Together they wander the desert in search of a great reunion of dervishes that takes place just once every thirty years. With faith as their only guide, the two journey for days through the expansive, barren landscape. To keep Ishtar entertained, Bab Aziz relays the ancient tale of a prince who relinquished his realm in order to remain next to a small pool in the desert, staring into its depths while contemplating his soul.

As the tale of the prince unfolds, the two encounter other travelers with stories of their own including Osman, who longs for the beautiful woman he met at the bottom of a well, and Zaid, who searches for the ravishing young woman who fled from him after being seduced by his songs. Filled with breathtaking images and wonderful music, Nacir Khemir has created a fairytale-like story of longing and belonging, filmed in the enchanting and ever-shifting sandscapes of Tunisia and Iran.

DVD EXTRAS:

Nacer Khemir's Desert Trilogy, 32 minutes

Photos

Trailers

Arabic And Farsi With English Subtitles

See all Editorial Reviews

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

37 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars And enchanting tale of the heart, December 7, 2008

By 

Aaron Vlek "Aaron Vlek" (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bab'aziz: The Prince Who Contemplated His Soul (DVD)

Bab Aziz is a feast for the eyes, the ears, and most of all the heart. A small girl follows her elderly grandfather out into the desert of the soul in search of a gathering of dervishes, and what a gathering it is! But getting there, like life itself, is the transformative part, without which the arriving itself can never happen. This tale within a tale within a tale is sure to delight fans of Sufism, mysticism, great epic tales, and really good music. I saw this film four times the first week it was in theaters. Chances are, a lot of DVD viewers will view and re-view this enchanting visual epiphany often.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "Arise O day, the atoms are dancing in molecular ecstasy....", April 4, 2009

By 

Katherine Dickson (Maryneal, Texas United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bab'aziz: The Prince Who Contemplated His Soul (DVD)

"Bab Aziz: The Price Who Contemplated His Soul" is a mix of many stories ...some of which I still wonder why they are there. I love the basic story of the blind grandfather and his granddaughter and the teaching of faith and the beauty of death. The poem...or song..."Arise O day, the atoms are dancing in molecular esctasy. Come my love-let us go join with them. " is worth watching the movie. It is mind expanding to see how many ways people have to worship (sufism, mysticism etc.)

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Magical, mystical, visually marvelous, September 20, 2009

By 

Richard Smith (SE Michigan) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Bab'aziz: The Prince Who Contemplated His Soul (DVD)

Bab'aziz had been so highly recommended to me by so many people that I fully expected to be disappointed. How could it be that good? But to my astonishment, it was and is that good. It works on so many levels. And repeated viewings bring further understanding, further "Oh!" moments, as previously overlooked meanings and linkages become clear. (Don't worry about missing them the first or second time; Bab'aziz will still be engrossing and memorable, with no feeling of having missed anything. The subsequent "Oh! moments are simply bonuses.) This most recent purchase of Bab'aziz was for a gift. I am confident of the reception my gift will receive.